1. The first movie I remember seeing in a theater was Star Wars: Episode V - Empire Strikes Back in a drive-in and freaking out when Luke Skywalker got his hand cut off. I remember watching Bambi as a very little child on VHS on repeat, and also freaking out when Bambi's mom gets shot. I really don't watch many movies but I've always watched a lot of documentaries.
A movie that really altered my views was American Drug War: The Last White Hope (2007), which I saw a few years after it came out. It's a documentary about how the U.S. government manufactured the crack epidemic in order to oppress people of color and profit off of people to fund militant groups. The documentary also explores more contemporary examples of the drug war. It's an extremely well-researched documentary with a lot of incredible information that really changed how I viewed the government and drugs.
http://americandrugwar.com/
Another documentary that really struck me was Jesus Camp (2006), which I saw when it came out. It's about a camp for fundamentalist Christian kids and the deep sense of nationalism tied into it. There was a really troubling scene where church leaders are instructing children to worship a cardboard cutout of George W. Bush. I was really fascinated with the deep sense of indoctrination and fear many of these children had.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0486358/
A documentary I saw recently that really left me unsettled was If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front (2011). I felt like it was very sympathetic to the ELF and Daniel McGowan even though they damaged millions of dollars worth of private property, but the information in the film was what really got me. The amount of forest that's been destroyed for profit, the way forests are managed, all of it was new to me. The fact that very little forest is actually protected really caught me off guard and genuinely pissed me off. Describe: The film mostly follows Daniel McGowan, a radical environmentalist that engaged in property destruction with other members of the ELF. McGowan was imprisoned for his roles in various acts of Arson after one of his cohorts agreed to testify against him and other conspirators. The film details how Daniel McGowan became a radical environmentalist and how he became involved with the ELF. It also talks about the classification of the serial arsonists as terrorists although they never killed anyone and the government's curious use of the term "terrorist." Analyze: The documentary won several awards and it was extremely thought-provoking. Even though I disagreed with some of the biased presentation of information and attempts at justifications, it wasn't so biased that I wanted to turn it off. I enjoyed that the documentary explored those issues from an uncommon perspective, rather than mindlessly demonizing Daniel McGowan, they actually tell the story. Interpret: I think the filmmaker was highly sympathetic to ELF, including their tactics, but I think the overall point was that there is a very serious issue with how our resources are managed and that something needs to be done. Evaluation: By watching the film, this was certainly the goal of the documentary.
http://www.ifatreefallsfilm.com/film.html
Piku:
Piku is about an architect living in Delhi with her father and brother. Her father is struggling with his aging and maintaining control over his family. Piku decides to travel to Kolkota to assist in selling her childhood home and her father and brother decide to go along with her. Because her father struggles with constipation and a load of irrational fears, he refuses to fly or take a train so the family has to embark on a 1500 km car ride in a taxi. Because Piku has offended all of the taxi drivers at a local company, the owner, her partner's friend, has to drive them. Piku discovers a romantic connection with the taxi owner, a former engineer. After arriving at the house and realizing her connection to it, Piku decides not to sell the house. Her father dies after riding a bike for 25km and finally completing a successful bowel movement. The movie explored several different themes such as aging, death, patriarchy, and societal expectations such as marriage. The film also explores the mutually controlling relationship between Piku and her father. He's extremely fussy and constantly has to have things his way so he interferes with Piku's life constantly. At the same time, Piku is overprotective and often attempts to control her father's actions. It was a very good movie with a surpising level of depth and touches of humor at the right times to keep the movie from being two hours of dysfunctional interactions.
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